Free Team Building Game

Objective : 

• For the team to tie an overhand knot in the middle section of rope without anyone releasing their ropes.  This is a powerful exercise if you need to focus on "vision."

Group Size: 

• Small teams of four; but you can have as many small groups as space and facilitators can handle.

Time:

• Allow  one hour.  It might seem like it can be done in less time, but it almost always takes the full hour, particularly with a larger group.    

Equipment :

• Three four-foot lengths of rope per team.

Facilitation:

• Distribute the ropes, and demonstrate an overhand knot (the kind that you start tying your shoes with ... half of a square knot ...); invite the teams to practice the knot with you a few times to make sure that they understand what an overhand knot is.
• Instruct the group to face you and grab on to the end of someone else's rope so that they form a connected line - not circle - with a rope connecting each person. The configuration should be person-rope-person-ROPE-person-rope-person, etc.
• In the configuration above, note the bold, all capital letters in the second "ROPE."  That is the rope in which the group must tie an overhand knot without anyone letting go of the ropes that they are holding.
• Simply instruct the group to tie an overhand knot in the center rope without anyone releasing the ends that they are holding and step back.  They need to figure it out.
• This activity is challenging - people will ask you many times if there are any "tricks" involved. There aren't any. The only "trick"  is simply for the group to consider themselves as one long rope, to get a clear picture of how an overhand knot is tied, and to follow through based on that vision and understanding.
• If a you have several teams and if any one finishes early, you can

          *   ask them to assist other groups by coaching

          *   observe other groups and make notes for the debrief

Development Areas:

• Creativity

• Cooperation

• Organizational skills

• Problem Solving

• Collaboration

• Communications

Debrief questions:

1. Were you happy with your team's performance at the end?

2. How did you  figure out "the trick" to successful completion of this task?

3. Did everyone on your team agree with all of the decisions being made?

4. Did everyone on your team participate in offering ideas for ways to win?

5. How do you feel your team did during this challenge?

  to more team building programs for change management:

The Amazing Race

The Apprentice

Survivor

Millionaire

Are You Smarter Than a 5th Grader?

Deal or No Deal

The Idol

Pyramid

Jeopardy